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Plazas de soberanía
The plazas  de  soberanía (Spanish
ˈ ɾˈ
pronunciation:  [ plaθaz ðe soβe a ni.a], literally "places of
sovereignty") are the Spanish sovereign territories in
North Africa. These are separate pieces of land scattered
along the Mediterranean coast bordering Morocco. The
name refers to the fact that these territories have been a
part of Spain since the formation of the modern country
(1492–1556), and are distinguished from African
territories obtained by Spain during the 19th and 20th
century.
The plazas de soberanía, plus Ceuta, Melilla, and Alborán
Historically, a distinction was made between the so-
Island
called "major sovereign territories", comprising the cities
of Ceuta and Melilla, and the "minor sovereign
territories", referring to a number of smaller exclaves and islands along the coast. In the present, the term refers mainly to
the latter.

Contents
History
Physical geography
Other islands
Political geography
Claimants
See also
References
Further reading

History
During the Reconquista and mainly following the conquest of Granada in 1492, forces of the Castilian and Portuguese
kingdoms conquered and maintained numerous posts in North Africa for trade and as a defence against Barbary piracy.

In 1415, the Portuguese conquered Ceuta. In 1481, the Papal bull Æterni regis had granted all land south of the Canary
Islands to Portugal. Only this archipelago and the possessions of Santa Cruz de la Mar Pequeña (1476–1524), Melilla
(conquered by Pedro de Estopiñán in 1497), Villa Cisneros (founded in 1502 in current Western Sahara), Mazalquivir
(1505), Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera (1508), Oran (1509–1790), Algiers (1510–1529), Bugia (1510–1554), Tripoli (1511–
1551), and Tunis (1535–1569) remained as Spanish territory in Africa. Finally, following the independence of Portugal from
Spain, Ceuta was ceded by Portugal to Spain in 1668.[1]

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In 1848, Spanish troops conquered the Islas Chafarinas. In the late 19th
century, after the so-called Scramble for Africa, European nations had taken
over colonial control of most of the African continent. The Treaty of Fez (signed
on 30 March 1912) made most of Morocco a protectorate of France, while Spain
assumed the role of protecting power over the northern part, Spanish
Morocco.[2]

When Spain relinquished its protectorate and recognized Morocco's

independence in 1956, it did not give up these minor territories. Spain had held Aerial view of the Peñón de
Alhucemas c. 1925
them well before the establishment of its protectorate.

On 11 July 2002, Morocco stationed six gendarmes on Perejil Island, which was
at the time a source of complaint by Spain. The Spanish Armed Forces responded by launching a military operation code-
named Operation Romeo-Sierra. The attack was carried out by Spanish commandos of Grupo de Operaciones Especiales.
The Spanish Navy and Spanish Air Force provided support; the six Moroccan navy cadets did not offer any resistance and
were captured and evicted from the island. It has since been evacuated by both countries.[3]

Physical geography
There are historically three plazas de soberanía:

Area
Territory Coordinates
(ha)
Islas Alhucemas 35°12′54″N 3°53′47″W 4.6
 Peñón de Alhucemas 35°12′48″N 3°53′21″W 1.5
35°12′55.83″N
 Isla de Tierra 1.7
3°54′8.10″W
 Isla de Mar 35°13′3.65″N 3°54′2.69″W 1.4
Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera, seen
Islas Chafarinas 35°11′N 2°26′W 52.5 from the Moroccan coast

35°10′43.90″N
 Isla del Congreso 25.6
2°26′28.31″W
35°10′55.77″N
 Isla Isabel II 15.3
2°25′46.90″W
35°10′51.72″N
 Isla del Rey 11.6
2°25′24.96″W
Peñón de Vélez de la 35°10′21.29″N
1.9
Gomera 4°18′2.89″W

Other islands
Apart from the three distinct groups, there are two other islands usually considered within the plazas de soberanía.

The disputed Isla Perejil, a small uninhabited islet close to Ceuta, considered by Spain to be a part of Ceuta and not a
territory in its own right.[4]

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The Isla de Alborán, another small island in the western Mediterranean, about 50 kilometres (31.05 miles) from the
African coast and 90 kilometres (55.92 miles) from Europe, is attached to the municipality of Almería on the Iberian
Peninsula.

Political geography
The plazas de soberanía are small islands and peninsulas off the coast of Morocco (the only peninsula, Peñón de Vélez de
la Gomera, was an island until a 1934 storm formed a sand bridge with the mainland). They are guarded by military
garrisons and administered directly by the Spanish central government.

Like Ceuta and Melilla, they are a part of Spain, therefore also part of the European Union, and their currency is the euro.

Claimants
Morocco claims sovereignty over the Spanish North African territories, plus the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla.
The legality of this claim is disputed by International Law and scholars given that Morocco was founded after these
territories were already constituted as part of Spain.

See also
Spanish Africa (disambiguation)
Spanish North Africa (disambiguation)
Spanish Protectorate of Morocco
List of Spanish Colonial Wars in Morocco

References
1. da Silva, Rui A. M. "Treaties Galore" (http://portugal-livre.00freehost.com/tfontbleu.html). Olivença - Portugal Livre.
2. "Treaty Between France and Spain Regarding Morocco". The American Journal of International Law. 7 (2): 81–99.
April 1913. doi:10.2307/2212275 (https://doi.org/10.2307%2F2212275). JSTOR 2212275 (https://www.jstor.org/stable/
2212275).
3. Ceberia Belaza, Monica; Ignacio Cembrero and Miguel González (17 September 2012). "The last remains of the
empire" (http://elpais.com/elpais/2012/09/17/inenglish/1347895561_857013.html). El Pais in English. Madrid.
Retrieved 24 September 2012.
4. Tremlett, Giles (13 July 2002). "Moroccans seize Parsley Island and leave a bitter taste in Spanish mouths" (https://w
ww.theguardian.com/world/2002/jul/13/spain.gilestremlett). The Guardian. London. Retrieved 19 May 2014. "When
officers from Spain's civil guard police force arrived on a small patrol boat from the nearby Spanish North African
enclave of Ceuta three miles away and to which the islet nominally belongs..."

Further reading
Tremper, Shawn Del (1988). Territorial Disputes in the Strait of Gibralter [sic] (M.A. thesis, International Affairs).
California State University, Sacramento. pp. 431 + bibliography. OCLC 19619469 (https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1961
9469).

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